{"product_id":"among-the-hedges-9781948830393","title":"Among the Hedges","description":"Casi, who is almost fourteen years old, has been skipping school and spending her days hidden among the hedges in a local park, listening to music and reading women's magazines. One day, Viejo, a fifty-year-old man, stumbles upon her hiding place, and the two strike up a friendship. He tells her about birds and Nina Simone, buys her soda and chips, and spends almost every day talking with her. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eDespite their age gap, there's something childlike about Viejo that leads Casi to believe that he's not like the other men she's encountered, the \"dangerous ones.\" But Viejo has a number of secrets in his past--all of which would be of grave concern to Casi's parents or any other adult who witnessed one of their rendezvous. As these secrets rise to the surface, the clock is ticking, the weather is growing cold and the school is untangling Casi's set of lies, setting up a moment where something has to give. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eWith spare, direct prose, Sara Mesa imbues these two outcasts with a great deal of warmth, raising questions about society's prejudices and assumptions, and creating a truly moving novel of an \"inappropriate\" relationship.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eMesa, Sara:\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e - \u003cb\u003eSara Mesa\u003c\/b\u003e is the author of eight works of fiction, including \u003ci\u003eScar\u003c\/i\u003e (winner of the Ojo Critico Prize), \u003ci\u003eFour by Four\u003c\/i\u003e (a finalist for the Herralde Prize), \u003ci\u003eAn Invisible Fire\u003c\/i\u003e (winner of the Premio Málaga de Novela), \u003ci\u003eAmong the Hedges\u003c\/i\u003e, and \u003ci\u003eUn amor\u003c\/i\u003e. Her works have been translated into more than ten different languages, and she has been widely praised for her concise, sharp writing style.\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eMcDowell, Megan:\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e - \u003cb\u003eMegan McDowell\u003c\/b\u003e has translated many of the most important Latin American writers working today, including Samanta Schweblin and Alejandro Zambra. Her translations have won the English PEN award and the Premio Valle-Inclán, and been nominated three times for the International Booker Prize. Her short story translations have been featured in \u003ci\u003eThe New Yorker\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eThe Paris Review\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eTin House\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eMcSweeney's\u003c\/i\u003e, and \u003ci\u003eGranta\u003c\/i\u003e, among others. In 2020 she won an Award in Literature from the American Academy of Arts and Letters. She lives in Santiago, Chile.","brand":"Open Letter","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50525455745298,"sku":"9781948830393","price":10.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_80154840-79c2-47a0-9c7a-7b7721728061.jpg?v=1731220201","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/among-the-hedges-9781948830393","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}